Nancy+Dawson

On March 21, 1927, 25-year-old Nancy Dawson, an immigrant from England, died on-site from a criminal abortion performed that day. Dr. J.F. Peck and midwife Christine Sedwig were indicted for felony murder on April 1.

The fact that both a doctor and a midwife were involved suggests that the abortion, as was common in Chicago in that era, was perpetrated by a midwife who called in a physician when her patient became ill.

Nancy worked in a factory, and was the wife of George Dawson and daughter of Joseph Smith of Leeds, England.

Nancy's abortion was typical of illegal abortions in that it was [|performed by a physician].

Keep in mind that things that things we take for granted, like antibiotics and blood banks, were still in the future. For more about abortion in this era, see [|Abortion in the 1920s].

For more on pre-legalization abortion, see [|The Bad Old Days of Abortion] Source:


 * [|Homicide in Chicago Interactive]

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